San Francisco Sheriff Ross Mirkarimi will let his undersheriff handle any disciplinary actions involving subordinates accused of domestic violence, but he will not give up oversight of his department's domestic violence prevention programs, he wrote in a letter to Mayor Ed Lee.

Mirkarimi is on probation after pleading guilty in March to misdemeanor false imprisonment for a New Year's Eve argument in which he bruised his wife's arm. His letter, sent earlier this week and obtained by The Chronicle, was in response to calls from Lee and District Attorney George Gascón to relinquish control over domestic violence programs at the Sheriff's Department. The mayor and district attorney are exploring how to force the sheriff to do so, possibly through legislation.

"At first blush, it doesn't appear Sheriff Mirkarimi has recused himself and addressed the concerns expressed by the mayor and the district attorney," Lee's spokeswoman Christine Falvey said Thursday. She added that the letter "is still under review."

In the three-page letter, his most extensive response to Lee's recusal demands to date, Mirkarimi wrote that he has no day-to-day role in administering two sheriff's programs on domestic violence prevention or in supervising inmates who are in custody for allegedly battering their partners.

He also noted that the sheriff does not have power over charging, prosecuting or sentencing domestic violence offenders, who, he wrote, are "treated no differently from any other inmates."

Lawyers consulted

As a result, Mirkarimi said, he is "confident that a conflict of interest does not exist" if he does not formally recuse himself. He said he had consulted with lawyers for the Sheriff's Department before reaching the conclusion.

If an underling is accused in disciplinary proceedings of domestic violence, Mirkarimi said, the undersheriff will determine if there is a conflict of interest, "with no input from me."

Sheriff's Department spokeswoman Susan Fahey said the conflict-of-interest policy that Mirkarimi articulated in the letter does not differ from the agency's practice under his long-serving predecessor, Michael Hennessey. She said it would apply to the case of sheriff's Lt. Vincent Calvarese, who is on administrative leave after pleading not guilty to misdemeanor charges of assault, battery and false imprisonment in July for an incident involving a man he used to date.

Lee tried to oust the sheriff after his guilty plea, but last month the Board of Supervisors refused to uphold the mayor's charge of official misconduct and reinstated Mirkarimi, a former supervisor.

After that vote, Gascón first called for Mirkarimi to appoint an independent administrator to handle all domestic violence issues. When the sheriff refused, Gascón said he was working on legislation.

Lee is also looking at whether he has the power to remove some responsibilities from the sheriff administratively, Falvey said. And a political committee calling itself San Francisco Women for Accountability and a Responsible Supervisor is exploring a possible recall of Mirkarimi.

No comment

Mirkarimi did not respond to requests for comment Thursday. Gascón declined to comment, saying he had not seen the letter, which was addressed to the mayor.

Supervisor John Avalos, one of four board members who voted to keep Mirkarimi as sheriff, said Mirkarimi's response is reasonable and that there is no legal basis for removing domestic violence programs from his control.

"The mayor's office is saying they can no longer work with the Sheriff's Department on domestic violence issues, but that discounts the years of experience a number of personnel have had around domestic violence," he said.

That experience will "ensure that (the department) will continue to have the high-quality domestic violence services it has had for years," Avalos said.

But that argument misses the bigger picture, said Kathy Black, executive director of the domestic violence shelter La Casa de las Madres.

"I haven't seen the letter, but I would say the primary, larger issue is public trust and the appearance of a conflict, when you have one of the highest-ranking law enforcement officials pleading guilty to a crime," Black said. "Whether he's ultimately overseeing the programs or is directly on the front lines ... the chief law enforcement officer should be above reproach."